ours is a promise that says government cannot solve all our problems, but what it should do is that which we cannot do for ourselves - protect us from harm and provide every child a decent education; keep our water clean and our toys safe; invest in new schools and new roads and new science and technology. our government should work for us, not against us. it should help us, not hurt us. it should ensure opportunity not just for those with the most money and influence, but for every american who's willing to work. that's the promise of america - the idea that we are responsible for ourselves, but that we also rise or fall as one nation; the fundamental belief that i am my brother's keeper; i am my sister's keeper. that's the promise we need to keep. that's the change we need right now.

so let me spell out exactly what that change would mean if i am president. . [cheers and applause] change means a tax code that doesn't reward the lobbyists who wrote it, but the american workers and small businesses who deserve it. unlike john mccain, i will stop giving tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, and i will start giving them to companies that create good jobs right here in america. [cheers and applause] i will eliminate capital gains taxes for the small businesses and the start-ups that will create the high-wage, high-tech jobs of tomorrow. i will cut taxes - cut taxes -

for 95% of all working families. the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class. and for the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, i will set a clear goal as president: in ten years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the middle east. [cheers and applause] we will do this. washington's been talking about our oil addiction for the last thirty years, and john mccain has been there for twenty-six of them.

tothat time, he's said no higher fuel-efficiency standards for cars, no to investments in renewable energy, no to renewable fuels. and today, we import triple the amount of oil as the day that senator mccain took office. now is the time to end this addiction, and to understand that drilling is a stop-gap measure, not a long-term solution. not even close. [cheers and applause] as president, i will tap our natural gas reserves, invest in clean coal technology, and find ways to safely harness nuclear power. i'll help our auto companies re- tool, so that the fuel- efficient cars of the future are built right here in america.

[cheers and applause] i'll make it easier for the erican people to afford these new cars. and i'll invest 150 billion dollars over the next decade in affordable, renewable sources of energy - wind power and solar power and the next generation of biofuels; an investment that will lead to new industries and five million new jobs that pay well and can't ever be outsourced. [cheers and applause] america, now is not the time for small plans. now is the time to finally meet our moral obligation to provide every child a world-class education, because it will take nothing less to compete in the global economy. michelle and i are only here tonight because we were given a chance at an education. and i will not settle for an

america where some kids don't have that chance. [cheers and applause] i'll invest in early childhood education. i'll recruit an army of new teachers, and pay them higher salaries and give them more support. and in exchange, i'll ask for higher standards and more accountability. and we will keep our promise to every young american - if you commit to serving your community or your country, we will make sure you can afford a college education. [cheers and applause] now is the time to finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible health care for

every single american. if you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. if you don't, you'll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of congress give themselves. and as someone who watched my mother argue with insurance companies while she lay in bed dying of cancer, i will make certain those companies stop discriminating against those who are sick and need care the most. [cheers and applause] now is the time to help families with paid sick days and better family leave, because nobody in america should have to

choose between keeping their jobs and caring for a sick child or ailing parent. now is the time to change our bankruptcy laws, so that your pensions are protected ahead of ceo bonuses; and the time to protect social security for future generations. and now is the time to keep the promise of equal pay for an equal day's work, because i want my daughters to have exactly the same opportunities as your sons. [cheers and applause] now, many of these plans will cost money, which is why i've laid out how i'll pay for every dime - by closing corporate loopholes and tax havens that don't help america grow. but i will also go through the federal budget, line by line, eliminating programs that no

longer work and making the ones we do need work better and cost less - because we cannot meet twenty-first century challenges with a twentieth century bureaucracy. [cheers and applause] and democrats, we must also admit that fulfilling america's promise will require more than just money. it will require a renewed sense of responsibility from each of us to recover what john f. kennedy called our "intellectual and moral strength." yes, government must lead on energy independence, but each of us must do our part to make our homes and businesses more efficient. yes, we must provide more ladders to success for young men who fall into lives of crime and despair. but we must also admit that programs alone can't replace parents; that government can't

turn off the television and make a child do her homework; that fathers must take more responsibility for providing the love and guidance their children need. individual responsibility and mutual responsibility - that's the essence of america's promise. and just as we keep our keep our promise to the next generation here at home, so must we keep america's promise abroad. if john mccain wants to have a debate about who has the temperament, and judgment, to serve as the next commander-in- chief, that's a debate i'm ready to have.

[cheers and applause] for while senator mccain was turning his sights to iraq just days after 9/11, i stood up and opposed this war, knowing that it would distract us from the real threats we face. when john mccain said we could just "muddle through" in afghanistan, i argued for more resources and more troops to finish the fight against the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11, and made clear that we must take out osama bin laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights. john mccain likes to say that he'll follow bin laden to the gates of hell - but he won't even go to the cave where he lives.

[cheers and applause] and today, as my call for a time frame to remove our troops from iraq has been echoed by the iraqi government and even the bush administration, even after we learned that iraq has a $79 billion surplus while we're wallowing in deficits, john mccain stands alone in his stubborn refusal to end a misguided war. that's not the judgment we need. that won't keep america safe. we need a president who can face the threats of the future, not keep grasping at the ideas of the past.

[cheers and applause] you don't defeat a terrorist network that operates in eighty countries by occupying iraq. you don't protect israel and deter iran just by talking tough in washington. you can't truly stand up for georgia when you've strained our oldest alliances. if john mccain wants to follow george bush with more tough talk and bad strategy, that is his choice - but it is not the change we need. [cheers and applause] we are the party of roosevelt. we are the party of kennedy. so don't tell me that democrats won't defend this country.

don't tell me that democrats won't keep us safe. the bush-mccain foreign policy has squandered the legacy that generations of americans -- democrats and republicans - have built, and we are here to restore that legacy. [cheers and applause] as commander-in-chief, i will never hesitate to defend this nation, but i will only send our troops into harm's way with a clear mission and a sacred commitment to give them the equipment they need in battle and the care and benefits they deserve when they come home. i will end this war in iraq responsibly, and finish the fight against al qaeda and the taliban in afghanistan.

i will rebuild our military to meet future conflicts. but i will also renew the tough, direct diplomacy that can prevent iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and curb russian aggression. i will build new partnerships to defeat the threats of the 21st century: terrorism and nuclear proliferation; poverty and genocide; climate change and disease. and i will restore our moral standing, so that america is once again that last, best hope for all who are called to the cause of freedom, who long for lives of peace, and who yearn for a better future. [cheers and applause] these are the policies i will pursue. and in the weeks ahead, i look forward to debating them with john mccain.

but what i will not do is suggest that the senator takes his positions for political purposes. because one of the things that we have to change in our politics is the idea that people cannot disagree without challenging each other's character and patriotism. [cheers and applause] the times are too serious, the stakes are too high for this same partisan playbook. so let us agree that patriotism has no party. i love this country, and so do you, and so does john mccain. the men and women who serve in our battlefields may be democrats and republicans and independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. they have not served a red america or a blue america - they have served the united states of america.

[cheers and applause] [audience chanting "usa!"] so i've got news for you, john mccain. we all put our country first. america, our work will not be easy. the challenges we face require tough choices, and democrats as well as republicans will need to cast off the worn-out ideas and politics of the past.

for part of what has been lost these past eight years can't just be measured by lost wages or bigger trade deficits. what has also been lost is our sense of common purpose - our sense of higher purpose. and that's what we have to restore. we may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. [cheers and applause] the reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the second amendment while keeping ak-47s out of the hands of criminals. [cheers and applause] i know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters

deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination. [cheers and applause] passions fly on immigration, but i don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts american wages by hiring illegal workers. this too is part of america's promise - the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort. i know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. they claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer and more honest in our public life is just a trojan horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values.

and that's to be expected. because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters. [cheers and applause] if you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. [cheers and applause] you make a big election about small things. and you know what - it's worked before. because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. when washington doesn't work, all its promises seem empty. if your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it's best to stop hoping, and settle for what you already know. i get it. i realize that i am not the likeliest candidate for this office. i don't fit the typical pedigree, and i haven't spent my career in the halls of washington. but i stand before you tonight because all across america

something is stirring. what the nay-sayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me. it's been about you. [cheers and applause] for eighteen long months, you -- it's about you. for 18 long months, you have stood up, one by one, and said enough to the politics of the past. you understand that in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to try the same old politics with the same old players and expect a different result. you have shown what history teaches us - that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn't come from washington. change comes to washington.

[cheers and applause] change happens because the american people demand it - because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time. america, this is one of those moments. i believe that as hard as it will be, the change we need is coming. because i've seen it. because i've lived it. i've seen it in illinois, when we provided health care to more children and moved more families from welfare to work. i've seen it in washington, when we worked across party lines to open up government and hold lobbyists more accountable, to give better care for our veterans and keep nuclear weapons out of terrorist hands. and i've seen it in this campaign. in the young people who voted for the first time, and in those who got involved again after a very long time.

in the republicans who never thought they'd pick up a democratic ballot, but did. [cheers and applause] i've seen it in the workers who would rather cut their hours back a day than see their friends lose their jobs, in the soldiers who re-enlist after losing a limb, in the good neighbors who take a stranger in when a hurricane strikes and the floodwaters rise. [cheers and applause] you know,this country of ours has more wealth than any nation, but that's not what makes us rich. we have the most powerful military on earth, but that's not what makes us strong. our universities and our culture are the envy of the world, but that's not what keeps the world coming to our shores. instead, it is that american spirit - that american promise - that pushes us forward even

when the path is uncertain; that binds us together in spite of our differences; that makes us fix our eye not on what is seen, but what is unseen, that better place around the bend. that promise is our greatest inheritance. it's a promise i make to my daughters when i tuck them in at night, and a promise that you make to yours - a promise that has led immigrants to cross oceans and pioneers to travel west; a promise that led workers to picket lines, and women to reach for the ballot. and it is that promise that forty five years ago today, brought americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a mall in washington, before lincoln's memorial, and hear a young preacher from georgia speak of his dream. [cheers and applause]

the men and women who gathered there could've heard many things. they could've heard words of anger and discord. they could've been told to succumb to the fear and frustration of so many dreams deferred. but what the people heard instead - people of every creed and color, from every walk of life - is that in america, our destiny is inextricably linked. that together, our dreams can be one. "we cannot walk alone," the preacher cried. "and as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. we cannot turn back." america, we cannot turn back. not with so much work to be done. not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for.

not with an economy to fix and cities to rebuild and farms to save. not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend. america, we cannot turn back. we cannot walk alone. at this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. let us keep that promise - that american promise - and in the words of scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess. thank you, god bless you, and god bless the united states of america. [cheers and applause] ♪

>> ♪ sun coming up over new york city school bus driver in a traffic jam staring at her rearview mirror looking at the promise of the promised land one kid dreams of fame and fortune one kid needs to pay the rent one could end up going to prison one might be president

only in america dream of the red, white, and blue only in america we keep going on through we all have a chance everybody gets a chance only in america only in america he lives in the back of a limousine well, -- a welder's son and a banker's daughter all they want is everything he came out here -- she came up here to be an actress

he was the singer and a band -- in a band they went to oklahoma ♪ [song changes] ♪

[cheers and applause] [song changes] ♪

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>> watch gavel-to-gavel coverage of the democratic convention from charlotte, n.c.. every minute, every speech, live here on c-span. next, mitt romney campaigning in ohio. after that, president obama talking at an ohio rally and the 1972 democratic convention. on newsmakers, the los angeles

mayor, the chairman of the democratic national convention. he previews the convention that begins tuesday in charlotte, north carolina and talks about campaign issues. sunday at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. >> i can only surmise, you know, there are a lot of cheap -- a lot of cages. >> i grabbed my cameraman and try to be important. >> i finagle my way onto one of the buses. the security council people seem pretty up sites. -- pretty uptight. are we the only ones here? the 99 bottles of beer on wall 99 bottles of beer ♪ come on, nobody? >> the french at the beginning

of the crisis and here, we have --se belligerents fighters, >> it sounds to me like he is dodging the question. i walked out of my apartment in upper west side manhattan. nice place to live. i came out and i was greeted by a man who was very nicely dressed. in a well-made suit. waiting for me outside my apartment and he says "are you ami horowitz?" my spider since started tingling and i say yes. and he asked me if this movie was more important than my family. >> that is sunday on c-span q&a.

>> now republican presidential candidate in the battleground state of ohio for a campaign event in cincinnati. you will hear from the ohio senator, house speaker john boehner, and ann romney. the event took place at the union terminal, a national historic landmark. >> thank you. thank you. we need him in the united states senate. send him their. what a terrific crowd. so, a cincinnati -- what about those redlegs? last night the team that has won the most games in baseball one again with a home run. i see another world series title

coming to cincinnati, folks. [cheers and applause] and here is what else i see. with a home run by mitt romney at the republican convention, i see the rahm e-ryan team going all the way to the white house. -- the romney-ryan team going all the way to the white house. [cheers and applause] with your help -- and folks, we need them and we need them now. we're living through the worst economic recovery since the great depression. over 8% unemployment the last three years under barack obama. double-digit unemployment among african-americans and hispanics. the president vowed to fix the economy and he has not done it. he has failed. we cannot afford another four years. do you agree with me on that?

we cannot afford more of the same. but more importantly, we have a candidate who has experience. he has got the record. he has got the character. andy has the policies to turn this thing around and bring back america's promise. [cheers and applause] that is mitt romney. and at his side he has a terrific spouse, and romney, -- ann romney. didn't she do a terrific job at the convention, folks? another home run. when he is in the white house, his partner is going to be ohio's own speaker of the house john boehner. where the democrats have failed, john boehner, working with paul ryan, past or responsible budget to get the debt under control.

he did. he has also passed over 30 pro- growth bills that the democrats have blocked. folks, help is on the way. [cheers and applause] please welcome our friend, ohio 's own speaker of the house, john boehner. [cheers and applause] >> welcome. let me just say it ohio has a great united states senator in rob portman. you know, he has been my friend for about 25 years and i remember 22 years ago telling him he ought to leave the house and go home and get ready to run for congress. he has done a great job on behalf of cincinnati and a great

job on behalf ohio and this -- behalf of ohio and this country. rob, keep up the great job. you know, republicans, we are lucky enough to have taken the majority 18 months ago. we promised the american people it would not be about us. that it would be about the american people. we promised the american people we would follow their will. that is why for 18 straight months we have focused on the economy and jobs every single day. and you know, while we have done all this good work in the house and done with the people asked us to do, harry reid has blocked everything we send it to them. this is why it is really important that we elect jon mandel and run harry reid back to nv. -- nevada.

the president made a lot of promises during his campaign. my voice is a little crackly because five days at the convention, a lot of speaking, my voice is about gone. but i am here today because, well, this is a very serious time in our country. of very serious time. you know, elections have consequences. four years ago, when we elected barack obama, there was hope that things would change, that he really would work across the aisle. unfortunately, he has not kept any of his promises. he is the one who said he would pass the stimulus bill and unemployment would not achieve 8%. 42 consecutive months with unemployment over 8%. he said he would create 3

million new jobs. 5 billion people have lost their jobs. it is time for america to stand up and reclaim our country. [cheers and applause] mitt romney is one of the most sincere, honest, and decent human beings to walk on the face of the earth. he has a record of bringing jobs from one coast to the other. he is a record of balancing budgets and fixing problems in his own state of massachusetts. he is a person who will keep his promises to the american people. he is the person who will fix our economy. and he is the guy who will send barack obama packing his bags back to chicago. [cheers and applause] ladies and gentlemen, mitt

romney. ♪ i was born for -- free i was born free born free free like a river raging strong and the wind [unintelligible] free like the grandest canyon wild like an untamed stallion [unintelligible] ♪ >> >> thank you. thank you so very much. what a welcome, cincinnati. thank you so much.

[applause] i was asked why it was we made cincinnati our first stop after becoming the nominee, our first political stop. i think you gave them the answer this morning. thank you. i brought with me a special person who lit up the convention and is going to light up america, my sweetheart, anne romney. -- ann romney. [applause] >> wow. that is an unbelievable recession. we are so grateful for all of you coming out. i know why you are doing it. it is not just for us. you are doing it for the country. [applause] you all have figured it out. you know this is an important election. we have been across this country and we have seen so many

families and individuals that are hurting, that are looking for hope and looking for help. guess what? help is on the way. [cheers and applause] i had a chance to talk a little bit about this guy that i love at the convention. i wanted to talk from my heart. i hope you felt that it was so much from my heart. [cheers and applause] i believe in america and i believe in this man. i know he can get it right for us, so thank you all very much. [cheers and applause] >> getting ready for my convention speech, i read some

speeches from some other people who spoke at conventions. i actually also read the inaugural speeches from some of our great presidents and heroes from my life. one of the speeches i read was the convention speech of barack obama. he was not one of the ones i wanted to draw from, but i could not resist some of the things he said. he made a lot of promises. and i notice he did not keep a lot of promises. one of the promises he made was that he was going to create a lot of jobs. today, 23 million people are out of work or have stopped looking for work. if you have a coach in your record is 0, it is time to get a new coach. [cheers and applause]

it is time for america to see a winning season again and we are going to bring it to them. now he famously said that he was going to slow the rise of the oceans. and he was going to heal the planet. our promise to you is this, we are going to help the american people and healthy families of america. [cheers and applause] this is a great state. you have a great governor, by the way. john kasich has done a terrific job. and he is showing the president, if the president would only look, how it is you can bring more jobs back to a state. he has made ohio more business- friendly. he has held down taxes. he has balanced budgets. paul ryan and i have a plan

that is going to get america working again. [cheers and applause] it will create 460,000 jobs right here in ohio. five things we will do. five things that will get this economy going again. by the way, i need josh mandel in the senate to make that happen. of course, rob portman will be there. those five things, number 1, get -- and speaker boehner and all these good republicans. we need them as well. those five things, number one, get america energy independence. he is our oil, our coal, our gas, how our renewables. -- nuclear and renewals --

renewals. number 2, late trade work for us. we will open markets and we will -- make markets work for us. we will crackdown on cheaters. number 3, we will make sure our workers have the skills they need to succeed and our kids have the skills they need in the 21st century. a lot of schools are not doing the job they need to do. i want to make sure we put our key its first and the teachers first and the teachers' union behind -- our kids first and our teachers first and the teacher'' union behind. number 4, you are not going to get entrepreneurs and businesses to invest in ohio and invest in other states in america and put their life savings to work here unless they know we are not headed to be placed greece or spain or italy or those places that have had

such trauma overseas. to make sure that is not the case, we will finally do something republicans have spoken of for a long time. we did not do it. we need to make sure we do not let them down this time. i will cut the deficit and get us on track for a balanced budget. [cheers and applause] and no. 5, i will champion small business. i want to make it easier for innovators to grow and build businesses, because that is where most of our jobs come from. and so, instead of doing what the president says he wants to do, which is raising taxes on

our best small businesses, i want to bring them down. and what regulators to understand it is their job to encourage small business. and i want to take that cloud off of small business. i want to get rid of obamacare and replace it. [cheers and applause] we don't -- [audience chanting "usa"] [cheers and applause]

we recognize what a great responsibility you have given us, how much you expect from us to get back the white house and get america back on track. we have seen it this last four years, a lot of unemployment, a lot of families having hard times. even as some jobs are being created, if they look at the jobs being created, they note the jobs we lost for middle- income jobs. the jobs we are getting back our low-wage jobs keeping people in this country are having hard times. the average income in america, the median income in america has dropped, even as the price of gasoline is up and food is up and health premiums are up. and add to all that the divisiveness and bitterness we have seen from the president's

campaign. look, america is a story of the many becoming one and accomplishing extraordinary things because of our unity. i thought today of the great heroism, patriotism, courage of one of ohio's best, neil armstrong. what a champion. [cheers and applause] the courage and character of that one man combined with the unity of so many who came together to help achieve the great accomplishments. it is a model for a nation. i will do everything in my power to bring us together, because united america -- and there to build the strongest economy in the history of